Just this once, let's have a little fun.
Thank you, Mr. Gilbert! Thank you, Mr. Sullivan!
Friday, October 15, 2010
Tuesday, October 12, 2010
Don't Take Out the Recycling
Or if you do, flip through the paper first and make sure there's nothing important in there.
Sunday, October 10, 2010
Don't Make Everyone Lose
I don't like to steal from other blogs, but I saw this video on Andrew Utter's* blog for The Mother of Invention Acting School and if you haven't seen it yet you should:
So vote. Do it. Do it in person or do it by mail.
Do it as many times as you dare.**
As always, it's all up to you.
*Thanks, Andrew!
** just kidding about that one part.
So vote. Do it. Do it in person or do it by mail.
Do it as many times as you dare.**
As always, it's all up to you.
*Thanks, Andrew!
** just kidding about that one part.
Friday, October 8, 2010
Where Have I Been?
Here. I've just been here. But I've been busy- with classes, with friends, with work.
And I've been fasting for almost a week, so I'm kind of tired, too tired to blog. Too tired to formulate a coherent thought. Too tired to stay up until 3 am typing anything that might make sense the next day.
Maybe staying up until 3 am for too many nights is what led to being tired to begin with. Maybe staying up too late made me gain weight to begin with. They say sleep deprivation leads to weight gain.
But doctors are always wanting me to get more exercise. When I say I don't have time, they suggest I find time. One doctor actually told me that she gets up at 5 am so she can exercise. Good for her. I'm sure she leaves the office at 5 pm. I don't leave work at 5 pm and I sure don't leave my bed at 5 am. Or not for the joy of exercise, anyway. Maybe to catch a plane or in the event of an earthquake. Otherwise, not so much.
And what's the point if getting the exercise just makes me more sleep deprived?
Someone recently said to me that the French get some things right. They sure do. I think they get a lot of things right.
So that's where I've been. Here. Fasting. Sleeping. Walking around in a fog.
Waiting for something to say.
In case you were wondering.
And I've been fasting for almost a week, so I'm kind of tired, too tired to blog. Too tired to formulate a coherent thought. Too tired to stay up until 3 am typing anything that might make sense the next day.
Maybe staying up until 3 am for too many nights is what led to being tired to begin with. Maybe staying up too late made me gain weight to begin with. They say sleep deprivation leads to weight gain.
But doctors are always wanting me to get more exercise. When I say I don't have time, they suggest I find time. One doctor actually told me that she gets up at 5 am so she can exercise. Good for her. I'm sure she leaves the office at 5 pm. I don't leave work at 5 pm and I sure don't leave my bed at 5 am. Or not for the joy of exercise, anyway. Maybe to catch a plane or in the event of an earthquake. Otherwise, not so much.
And what's the point if getting the exercise just makes me more sleep deprived?
Someone recently said to me that the French get some things right. They sure do. I think they get a lot of things right.
So that's where I've been. Here. Fasting. Sleeping. Walking around in a fog.
Waiting for something to say.
In case you were wondering.
Saturday, September 25, 2010
Friday, September 17, 2010
Appliances 101
I saw this article in the New York Times this week. To cut to the chase, you're probably using all your appliances all wrong. You're wasting soap in your dishwasher and your washing machine and generally causing unnecessary wear and tear on all your household appliances. So stop it.
My husband is a remarkably organized man. He has all our appliance manuals in a single place. He knows where to find any of them at any given time. BUT . . . before putting them away, he also reads them. Or he at least gives them a good skim.
When I buy something, I never put the manuals away because I'm always intending to read them. But the truth is, my life is so exciting and so glamorous, I never actually get around to reading the manuals. There's always something better to do or read (or write). Eventually, I'll realize that I've been using the device for so long without reading any instructions that it's completely unnecessary.
I bought a new cell phone in July. My old phone was practically an antique so there are a lot of features to catch up on. I think I saw the manual under a stack of magazines (in a laundry basket) last week. At this point, there is no point to reading it. I make calls. I answer calls. I have no idea what to do with the few pictures I've taken with the phone. Why do I even want to take pictures with my phone? I carry a real camera around all the time anyway. And no, I've never read the camera's manual either and I seem to be doing just fine if the pictures on this blog are any indication.
As far as how much detergent to use in my dishwasher, I figure that line is there for a reason. With the washing machine, I wing it. More soap for a bigger load, less for a smaller one. I don't need a master's degree to figure that out. However, I think I might try out this test in the article:
. . . to determine if you’re oversoaping. Take four to six clean bath towels, put them in your front-loading washing machine (one towel for a top loader). Don’t add any detergent or fabric softener. Switch to the hot water setting and medium wash and run it for about five minutes.
This bit from the article seemed pointless: Load large items at the sides and back of the dishwasher so that they don’t block water and detergent from reaching other dishes.
Raise your hand if you hadn't figure that one out.
But this is a new idea (or new to me)
Also, remove baked on food and large chunks, but for the most part, everyone I spoke to said prerinsing dishes before putting them in the dishwasher was not only unnecessary, it wasted thousands of gallons of water and could actually result in dirtier dishes.
“The soap needs something to work against to get the dishes clean,” said Lou Manganiello, who owns Household Appliance Service in Hawthorne, N.Y.
The soap needs something to work against? Mmm. Sounds suspicious. Maybe
The part about the dryers seems odd. I mean, I can't imagine anyone throwing in a handful dryer sheets. I don't use dryer sheets at all.
And the self-cleaning oven thing? I should only use my oven enough that it needs cleaning.
Do you actually read instructions? Do you know where your manuals are? Could you, too, be guilty of oversoaping?
My husband is a remarkably organized man. He has all our appliance manuals in a single place. He knows where to find any of them at any given time. BUT . . . before putting them away, he also reads them. Or he at least gives them a good skim.
When I buy something, I never put the manuals away because I'm always intending to read them. But the truth is, my life is so exciting and so glamorous, I never actually get around to reading the manuals. There's always something better to do or read (or write). Eventually, I'll realize that I've been using the device for so long without reading any instructions that it's completely unnecessary.
I bought a new cell phone in July. My old phone was practically an antique so there are a lot of features to catch up on. I think I saw the manual under a stack of magazines (in a laundry basket) last week. At this point, there is no point to reading it. I make calls. I answer calls. I have no idea what to do with the few pictures I've taken with the phone. Why do I even want to take pictures with my phone? I carry a real camera around all the time anyway. And no, I've never read the camera's manual either and I seem to be doing just fine if the pictures on this blog are any indication.
As far as how much detergent to use in my dishwasher, I figure that line is there for a reason. With the washing machine, I wing it. More soap for a bigger load, less for a smaller one. I don't need a master's degree to figure that out. However, I think I might try out this test in the article:
. . . to determine if you’re oversoaping. Take four to six clean bath towels, put them in your front-loading washing machine (one towel for a top loader). Don’t add any detergent or fabric softener. Switch to the hot water setting and medium wash and run it for about five minutes.
Check for soap suds. If you don’t see any suds right away, turn off the machine and see if there is any soapy residue. If you see suds or residue, it is soap coming out of your clothes from the last wash.
This bit from the article seemed pointless: Load large items at the sides and back of the dishwasher so that they don’t block water and detergent from reaching other dishes.
Raise your hand if you hadn't figure that one out.
But this is a new idea (or new to me)
Also, remove baked on food and large chunks, but for the most part, everyone I spoke to said prerinsing dishes before putting them in the dishwasher was not only unnecessary, it wasted thousands of gallons of water and could actually result in dirtier dishes.
“The soap needs something to work against to get the dishes clean,” said Lou Manganiello, who owns Household Appliance Service in Hawthorne, N.Y.
The soap needs something to work against? Mmm. Sounds suspicious. Maybe
The part about the dryers seems odd. I mean, I can't imagine anyone throwing in a handful dryer sheets. I don't use dryer sheets at all.
And the self-cleaning oven thing? I should only use my oven enough that it needs cleaning.
Do you actually read instructions? Do you know where your manuals are? Could you, too, be guilty of oversoaping?
Sunday, September 12, 2010
and How Should Any of Us Move Forward?
I got sidetracked in yesterday’s post. Started on one path – diverted on a tangent.
What I really wanted to write about on the anniversary was something I’ve observed in two friends on their Facebook posts. One wrote yesterday “How can this country ever recover its soul?” Another recently wrote that he fears that economically, America is doomed.
The first friend is a liberal. The latter is a fiscal conservative. Their fears lead in the same direction. I notice the same impulses in myself – wondering what our future will bring. Bankrupted by two ill-considered wars and a populace that foams at the mouth at any mention of new taxes, not to mention failures to create a realistic energy policy and an honest policy regarding climate change (all advised by the string-pulling shadow plutocracy), we are certainly headed for economic collapse.
Manipulated by media personalities and religious zealots exploiting our inherent anti-intellectual tendencies, we have been led astray from our better nature. We have forgotten who we are. We have forgotten that we are all in this together. We have forgotten to lead by example. We have forgotten that if we want to live in a kinder more freedom-loving world we must individually and collectively be kinder more freedom-loving people.
The events of nine years ago should have made us more reflective, not less so. How is it not obvious that our excursions into other lands put us more at risk, not less so?
How could one nut case in Florida (a state well-known for its nut cases) have drawn so much attention to himself for his little hate-fueled stunt?
How could a media clown like Glenn Beck draw so many to a rally in Washington?
How is it not obvious that protesting the building of the Islamic cultural center can only reinforce the message of terrorists and that accepting the Muslim community is the best way to speak against the extremists and show their insanity for what it is?
With so much bridge building to be done, why do we waste time and resources bickering over whether or not certain adults have the right to marry? And why is it that those who oppose the rights of that group of adults are the ones who do most of the complaining about the government’s impositions of our freedoms?
We were told that we were attacked by those who opposed our freedoms. It was never made clear exactly which freedoms those were. What has been clear in the nine years since is that we have turned on each other, attacking ourselves from within, opposing ourselves for our own freedoms.
I, too, wonder if we can ever recover our soul or even the illusion of one. If we do not, we are certainly doomed.
It is ourselves we are now at war with, not the others and in falling for their trick we have handed the others their success.
What I really wanted to write about on the anniversary was something I’ve observed in two friends on their Facebook posts. One wrote yesterday “How can this country ever recover its soul?” Another recently wrote that he fears that economically, America is doomed.
The first friend is a liberal. The latter is a fiscal conservative. Their fears lead in the same direction. I notice the same impulses in myself – wondering what our future will bring. Bankrupted by two ill-considered wars and a populace that foams at the mouth at any mention of new taxes, not to mention failures to create a realistic energy policy and an honest policy regarding climate change (all advised by the string-pulling shadow plutocracy), we are certainly headed for economic collapse.
Manipulated by media personalities and religious zealots exploiting our inherent anti-intellectual tendencies, we have been led astray from our better nature. We have forgotten who we are. We have forgotten that we are all in this together. We have forgotten to lead by example. We have forgotten that if we want to live in a kinder more freedom-loving world we must individually and collectively be kinder more freedom-loving people.
The events of nine years ago should have made us more reflective, not less so. How is it not obvious that our excursions into other lands put us more at risk, not less so?
How could one nut case in Florida (a state well-known for its nut cases) have drawn so much attention to himself for his little hate-fueled stunt?
How could a media clown like Glenn Beck draw so many to a rally in Washington?
How is it not obvious that protesting the building of the Islamic cultural center can only reinforce the message of terrorists and that accepting the Muslim community is the best way to speak against the extremists and show their insanity for what it is?
With so much bridge building to be done, why do we waste time and resources bickering over whether or not certain adults have the right to marry? And why is it that those who oppose the rights of that group of adults are the ones who do most of the complaining about the government’s impositions of our freedoms?
We were told that we were attacked by those who opposed our freedoms. It was never made clear exactly which freedoms those were. What has been clear in the nine years since is that we have turned on each other, attacking ourselves from within, opposing ourselves for our own freedoms.
I, too, wonder if we can ever recover our soul or even the illusion of one. If we do not, we are certainly doomed.
It is ourselves we are now at war with, not the others and in falling for their trick we have handed the others their success.
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